A Hollywood Love Story

3rd Sunday of Lent – Scrutiny
Ex 17:3-7
Rm 5:1-2,5-8
Jn 4:5-42

This is a love story right out of a Hollywood movie.

Boy meets girl from the other side of the tracks. Girl is suspicious of boy. Boy offers outrageous promise. Girl is skeptical. They talk politics and religion. Boy’s friends think he’s crazy for getting involved with girl. Boy wins over girl. Girl takes boy to meet the family. Everyone lives happily ever after.

This story seems familiar to us because it is so common. We see our own relationships mirrored in the relationship between Jesus and the woman. We never know her name. Maybe because she’s a metaphor for us all. We rarely, if ever, fall head over heels in love with another at first sight. It takes time to get over our skepticism and our differences. We need to delve deeper into the other person’s heart before we can trust. And true love can only be built upon trust.

Jesus strips all the pretences away immediately. He gets right to the point.

One sows, another reaps. Sometimes that sowing isn’t a positive thing. The woman had had five bad relationships. Each one left scars on her that needed to be healed. Why did Jesus bring up her husbands? Was it because her failed relationships were what were causing her the most pain in her life? Did she feel a failure? Was she being ostracized by the townsfolk because of her reputation? Is that what was keeping her from taking the life giving waters?

Jesus wasn’t saying “gotcha”. He knew what was in her heart just as he knows all of us. There is no way we can hide from God. But he had to expose the scars before the woman could be open to receiving his healing waters.

We all come to the well with scars. All of our buckets have holes in them. We often feel unworthy to approach the well. We do it in secret, when no one else is around.

What do we do when we come to the well and find Jesus is already there waiting for us? Are we as skeptical as the Samaritan woman?

This morning we are celebrating the first scrutiny for our elect and candidates. There will be two more in the weeks to come. They’re not here to bare their souls to anyone, and we’re not here to scrutinize them. They have been scrutinizing themselves for a long time, and today we’re here to accept them as they are, just as Jesus accepts them for who they are. Just as he accepted the woman at the well.
This entire gospel is a metaphor for the journey of our elect and candidates. In fact, at all the other Masses this weekend we will be reading completely different readings. Because we have our Elect and candidates here this morning for the Scrutiny we must read these particular readings, from the Gospel of John, because these stories are their stories.

Most of us came to the well first when we were infants. We oftentimes fail to appreciate what that water has done for us, continues to do for us. These catechumens are coming to the well of their own free will as adults. And teenagers. What are they looking for? What scars do they need to have healed?

These folks are also living their own love stories with Jesus. Some stories are very passionate. Others are more calm and methodical. Some started out skeptical of the guy at the well. Others were more sure of themselves. But all have scars. All have history. And Jesus chooses to insert himself into their histories just as he physically inserted himself into the history of mankind 2000 years ago. As he continues to insert himself into our histories today.

Jesus didn’t have to speak to the woman that day. He could have waited for the disciples to return with food and drink and been on his way. But he crossed over the woman’s personal boundary and forced her to take a look at him and at herself. He forced her to scrutinize herself and her life. He asked her to see herself as he saw her. And then he offered a way for her to heal her scars.

Our own personal love stories are far different from Hollywood’s romantic comedies. Oftentimes they’re more like Shakespearean tragedies. But no matter how bad they are from time to time, we keep coming back. We are drawn to love. That’s human nature. We keep on coming back to the well because we thirst for that something we can’t seem to put our finger on. But God knows what we need. Because God is love. He knows what we thirst for because he put that thirst in us.

Have you met Jesus at your well? Are you suspicious of his outrageous promise? Has he won you over yet? Has he healed your scars? Have you introduced him to your friends and family? Do you believe he is the savior of the world?

Will you live happily ever after?